After being inspired to be brave by a few of you intrepid early Covid travelers, we just booked eight nights in Nice. We leave October 8th, check in October 9th.
Tomorrow I will tackle the Passe Sanitaire.
We've never booked so last minute. It's very exciting! We picked Nice because we expect to be able to be outdoors a lot, even in October.
I'll keep you all posted!!
Hooray for you!!!!!!!!!! We’ll be in Nice with you:)
I'm sure you'll be careful and have a great time. Provence and the Riviera have the most dark red on the France active cases map.
I hope you have a GREAT time.
We need to get our insurance next. I've heard it's difficult for Canadians.
Nigel, dark red? That means increasing? I just looked at overall trend. Yikes!
We just have decided Covid is never going away so need to at some point take the plunge.
Ontario is decreasing, though very slightly.
to show what I'm talking about https://reopen.europa.eu/en/map/FRA/7011 and then tap on "What is the meaning of the colours on the map?"
As we leave in just a couple of days, I’ve been following statistics for quite awhile. The TousAntiCovid App is really informative for France. I can see total number of ICU beds used for COVID patients in France (latest figure is 1832). New ICU patients in France over past 24 hours (33). I can see the R (reproduction) number. It’s .74 - well under the 1 required for the virus to spread. It’s been falling since August. Check out the App - it’s where you store your QR code as well, so you can just flash the code to enter sites.
Good for you Andrea!! We leave for Paris in a couple of weeks. I found this post from Bets (who lives in southern France) on another thread very helpful and uplifting:
Things aren't changing rapidly but they are steadily getting better. 81.7% of the population over 12 is fully vaccinated. Positive cases are 1/3 what they were three weeks ago. Hospitals and medical services are functioning normally. There is no crisis in France right now. In some areas, mask mandates are being lifted due to the lowered risk. Everything is open, classes, conferences, meetings are in person, the economy is doing well, and everyone is masked inside, while many people mask outside, too. It's not easy to grasp how different it is to be in France.
Susan, I saw the very same thing and have "met" Bets on the International RS Zoom Meeting (organized by Sacramento Andrea). Also communicated with Bets a lot a few years ago about Transatlantic cruises. I trust her posts.
Crazy? Not at all. Just continue to practice safe actions, for yourself and others. You’re vaccinated, right?
Going to some places in the USA . . . that would seem to be nuts! Enjoy Nice! I’ve been there in October, and really enjoyed the time. Dining outside was even offered by lots of places, even at night, years before the pandemic. But that made it a smoking section, so we stuck to inside tables.
Yes, Cyn, we are vaccinated with the mix accepted in France but not USA. I feel confident we won't get ill, but of course there always the worry of an asymptomatic positive test before we leave or when returning. But again, as I see Covid never ending I need to face that at some time.
Back in 2011 we spent a day in Nice in the month of September. That was part of a longer trip to the area (day trip from multiple nights in Villefranche).
There are a couple of nice gardens in Menton if you're looking for more outdoor stuff to do. The Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild also has a nice garden.
We've been to the Villa Ephrussi and it's beautiful gardens. Probably won't go a 2nd time.
Definitely interested in the Menton gardens. DH 8s a keen gardener.
hey hey andrea
we all have "crazy" in us and sometimes we have to go for it. i'm happy for you guys.
last minute trips can be the best, enjoy and have a fabulous time
aloha
You go, girl!!!
Thank you all for your positivity. The only person we've told so far was a bit negative.
You are not crazy. We just flew from Pearson to Paris. Then Paris to nice yesterday. Bonjour from France 🇫🇷
NOT CRAZY!!!! I leave for France in 1.5 weeks and I've pondered every angle, as I'm sure you have. Please look at France's CovidTracker.fr website (https://covidtracker.fr/). You can see stats nationwide and drill down by department (so, Alpes-Maritimes), and see trends. Many areas are on a slow but steady decline.
Andrea- nope, not crazy. You are just probably an early adopter in your friend set. We went to Portugal and had a marvelous time. Congrats on taking the plunge- I bet you will have a wonderful time! I am looking forward to reading your trip reports since I have not yet been to Nice and its on my list. ;o) Let us know on the forum how we can help so you can feel ready for your trip!
The two Menton gardens I visited (there are others--the city is known for its mild winter climate):
Val Rahmeh botanical garden: Not too far from the Menton-Garavan train station east of the town center. There might also be a bus that goes past the garden.
Serre de la Madone: Has city-bus service. I don't know the frequency. This one's sort of on the side of a hill. Might not be good at the end of a long walking day if you have knee issues or anything like that.
Menton has a medieval old town which unfortunately is extremely touristy. It reminded me of the crowds I encountered in St-Malo. I saw very few other people in the gardens; I'm actually I'm not sure I saw anyone other than the folks who sold me tickets. And I was there in May.
Andrea, in an earlier post you mentioned difficulty in obtaining travel insurance for Canadians. Not sue if you found anything yet but we picked it up from Manulife. They have a single trip Covid plan that covers quarantine costs as well as hospitalization with a cap of $1 million (60 year old and 62 year old, non smokers, no pre-existing conditions, both fully vaccinated). It was $214 CDN for each of us for Oct 5 to 29 (Paris, Loire Valley and Provence).
"Fear is for people who don't get out very much." Rick Steves New Yorker interview.
You'll have a wonderful time. It's sunny, in the 70s and 80s, and there is so much to do in and around Nice.
Menton is normally a snowbird destination for northern Europeans and a weekend getaway for Italians. I think Anne hit it at the height of the pre-Covid, tourist horde period.
The coast is now light red, Nigel, 150 per 7-day period per 100,000. We're just puttering along doing everything we normally do, except masked.
An exception is Marseille/ Bouche du Rhône, which is black. Good grief. What are they doing over there! Black! Note that Aix-en-Provence is in the same department.
Andrea, I don’t think you’re crazy. I think you will have a wonderful time.
Thank you acraven for the garden information.
Thanks Peter about the insurance information. I had assigned insurance research to DH as his task for today. I think you lightened his load and I can add something else to his list!
And Bets, your calm words are always welcome.
I'm sure it will go off without a hitch, as it has for all of you who have taken the plunge and never regretted it.
Andrea, yes, I trust Bets implicitly. Funny you mention Sacramento Andrea, she and Jim came to my house for dinner yesterday. I’ll say it again, Good for you for going! I’ll be right behind you!
As of today: 66 days to go...... :0)
Thanks again Peter. We went with Manulife. At 51 and 51 it was 183 per person.
Ok, good deal. Thanks for following up.
We will be to the northwest of you while you are in Nice for a period of about 2 or 3 days. Have a great time. Are you going to be sticking to Nice the whole time or checking out points east (Menton) or west (Antibes, Cannes, etc) or north (Vence, St Paul de Vence) of there?
I'm a bit jealous.
Peter, we are planning on at least two day trips - Menton and Cannes. I might add Antibes, for the Picasso Museum, if we feel we have the time. We spent three nights in Villefranche ten years ago, so can skip that. On that trip, we came to Nice for a lovely day. So happy to be going back.
I hope you enjoy your trip and the weather stays hospitable. If you have not been to Nice since 2011, you will be amazed at the transformation of the center (and it is ongoing). You still have a lot to see -- Antibes, Cannes/Leyrins, St. Paul de Vence/Vence/Touretttes sur Loup/Gourdon, Eze/La Turbie, Train des Merveilles, Menton, etc
Here's the gouvernment.fr site with info by department (as an alternative to the above, and to reinforce what BETS said):
Link
The Alpes Maritimes is at 107 cases per 7 days per 100K. 90% of adults are fully vaccinated. The higher level of vaccinations, masking and pass has helped, it appears. There has been no spike since the holidays and rentree, unlike last year.
I'm back stateside but in August things were a bit crowded and the infection level higher. Apparently, the CdA saw a better tourism year than 2019, but with more EU and French than normal. I felt safer in France with all the precautions than I did in the US and now is even better.
Not crazy at all! Fellow Canadian who booked last weekend for Oct 11th flight ! 😁 Fly to Paris, train to Amsterdam for a week, then back to Paris for 6 days then fly home.
